These short stories are written in first-person point of view, meaning the story is told directly by a narrator using “I” and “my.” First-person narration places readers inside a character’s thoughts, memories, and perceptions, often creating a strong sense of intimacy or unreliability.
In some stories, the narrator’s voice shapes how events are interpreted. In others, what the narrator misunderstands—or chooses not to say—is just as important as what is revealed. Because of this, first-person point of view is frequently used to explore memory, guilt, desire, identity, and moral conflict. See also:
First-Person Short Stories
“Fox 8” by George Saunders
A fox learns to understand human language by listening to bedtime stories. When a development project threatens the animals’ habitat, he tries to make sense of human behavior and morality. (Summary of “Fox 8”)
“Powder” by Tobias Wolff
A father and son are on a skiing trip just before Christmas. The mother wants the boy home on Christmas Eve for dinner. The father assures her he will be back. When it comes time to leave, they try to get a few more runs in. (Summary & analysis of “Powder”)
“Everyday Use” by Alice Walker
Mama recounts a visit from her educated daughter, Dee, whose ideas about heritage clash with the family’s lived experience. The narrator must decide what cultural inheritance truly means. (Summary & analysis of “Everyday Use”)
“The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
An unnamed narrator insists on his sanity while describing the murder of an old man. His obsessive justifications reveal a mind unraveling under guilt and paranoia. (Read “The Tell-Tale Heart”)
“Marigolds” by Eugenia W. Collier
Lizabeth recalls a time when she was fourteen, in Maryland, during the Depression. A woman in her neighborhood, Miss Lottie, lived in a dilapidated home, but had a colorful marigold garden. She was an outcast, and the children made her a target of taunts. (Summary & analysis of “Marigolds”)
“Winter Rain” by Alice Adams
Patience remembers the winter of 1947-48 in Paris when she was studying at the Sorbonne. She rented an overpriced room from Mme. Frenaye, an elderly, good-looking and charming woman. She met Bruno, an Italian studying law, with whom she had an up and down relationship. (Summary of “Winter Rain”)
This story can be read in the sample of
“The Taximan’s Story” by Catherine Lim
A taxi driver talks about his life, particularly the bad behavior he sees from young people while he’s on the job. He’s also had some trouble with one of his own daughters. (Summary of “The Taximan’s Story”)
“Lusus Naturae” by Margaret Atwood
A young girl is afflicted with an unusual condition that distresses her family. With the potential scandal threatening her older sister’s marriage prospects, they decide something must be done. (Summary of “Lusus Naturae”)
“The Fourth Alarm” by John Cheever
A man sits drinking gin on a Sunday morning. His wife, Bertha, a good-looking young woman, will arrive tomorrow just for a day. She used to be a teacher, but now she lives near the theatre where she performs. She was cast in Ozamanides II, a scandalous show that made her husband want to seek a divorce. (Summary)
“An Hour with Abuelo” by Judith Ortiz Cofer
Arturo doesn’t want to visit his grandfather in a nursing home during his summer vacation, but he gives in to his mother’s urging. His grandfather’s body is giving out but his mind is sharp. He tells Arturo the story of his life, which included teaching, the army, farming, and a love of books and learning. (Summary & analysis of “An Hour with Abuelo”)
“In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried” by Amy Hempel
The narrator visits her friend, who is dying of cancer, in a California hospital. The friend wants to talk about trivial things. The narrator has waited two months to visit. (Summary & analysis of “In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried”)
“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe
Montresor recounts how he carefully plotted revenge against Fortunato for an unnamed insult. The narrator describes the crime with calm precision and chilling certainty. (Read “The Cask of Amontillado”)
“Sleepstalk” by Courtney Summers
The narrator goes to Jed Miller’s and stares up at his window. She’s supposed to stay away from him. Jed opens the front door and looks right at her. She’s curious how he’ll react to her. He walks down his front path to the street and goes right by her without any acknowledgement. He’s sleepwalking. She follows him and thinks about their history and her accident.
This story and the next one can be read in the preview of Defy the Dark.
“Nature” by Aprilynne Pike
The narrator is getting a physical. She lives in New Horizon, the longest lasting community since the Great Collapse. Her hip measurement is going to lower her final score. She had her heart set on being a Nurture but her growth spurt at sixteen put her score in the range of a Nature. This changes her life path considerably. Nurtures, Natures and Laborers all have different roles. She adjusts to this development.
“The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara
A young girl describes a class trip to an expensive toy store. The outing exposes stark differences in wealth and opportunity. (Summary & analysis of “The Lesson”)
“Now I Lay Me” by Ernest Hemingway
Nick Adams lies awake through the nights, feeling if he closes his eyes in the dark, his soul will leave his body. He passes the time by imagining his old fishing spots in great detail. Sometimes he fishes four or five streams in a night and makes up new ones. When he can’t fish, he prays for all the people he’s ever known. Other nights, he tries to remember everything that’s ever happened to him, before the war and back to childhood. He shares the room with another man. (Summary of “Now I Lay Me”)
“Condensed Milk” by Varlam Shalamov
The narrator is in a Russian labor camp working in a mine. He envies Shestakov, an engineer-geologist who works in the office. While longing for some bread, the narrator is approached by Shestakov, who has an escape plan. (Summary & analysis of “Condensed Milk”)
“The Scholarship Jacket” by Marta Salinas
A fourteen-year-old girl in a small town Texas school has been a straight-A student for eight years. This means she will be awarded the school’s scholarship jacket, but a complication arises. (Summary & analysis of “The Scholarship Jacket”)
“Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin
The narrator, a high school teacher, reads in the paper that his younger brother, Sonny, has been arrested for dealing heroin. Their lives have gone quite differently—Sonny, a jazz musician and drug user, and the narrator who is educated and living in a middle-class neighborhood. The narrator feels guilt over not having been able to help his brother more. (Read “Sonny’s Blues”)
“Araby” by James Joyce
Every morning, a boy looks through an opening in the blinds at the door where his friend Mangan lives. The boy can’t stop thinking about Mangan’s older sister. When she leaves her house, he follows her as long as he can. When she finally speaks to him, he can hardly answer. She asks if he’s going to the bazaar; she would like to go but can’t. He says he will bring something back for her. (Read “Araby”)
“Cathedral” by Raymond Carver
A woman and a blind man have kept in contact for ten years, mailing tapes to each other. His wife has recently died, so he’s going to visit her family. On the way, he’s going to spend a night at the woman’s place with her new husband. Her husband isn’t looking forward to the visit. (Read “Cathedral”)
“Raymond’s Run” by Toni Cade Bambara
A young girl, Hazel, trains for a May Day race while looking after her older, mentally challenged brother, Raymond. Hazel is known as the fastest runner in her neighborhood and is determined to live up to her reputation.
“One Small Step” by Aime Kaufman
The narrator, Zaida, is a seventeen-year-old girl living on Mars. As the first human born there, she’s a celebrity back on Earth. She has billions of followers who look forward to her updates. Her parents want her to go to Harvard. She’s not sure what she wants to do. When Zaida goes out on inspection duty with her best friend, Keiko, there’s an accident.
“The School” by Donald Barthelme
A teacher relates all of the experiences with death that his class has in a single school year.
“Never Have I Ever” by Karen M. McManus
Grace is at Katie’s party after curfew, but it’s ok because her parents are away. They start playing Never Have I Ever, and Grace gets teased a bit for not having any fun because she hasn’t done any of the things that come up. The group gets a surprise when they hear the voice of Caleb Manning, who’s known for getting into trouble. Grace invited him.
“Grace” by Darcie Little Badger
The narrator recounts an incident from eighth grade. It started her first day in a new school. She stood out as being different, being of Lipan Apache descent. She joined the chess club and ended up playing with Brandon. It became a regular thing.
“Rules of the Game” by Amy Tan
Lindo is a mother and a Chinese immigrant. Her daughter, Waverly, is American born. Their mother/daughter relationship is explored as the daughter learns to play chess and progresses from her first tournament at age eight and continues as she becomes a stronger player. (Read “Rules of the Game”)
“Nemesis” by Kirsten Miller
The narrator is investigating a new client, Clea. She watches as Clea exits her school and heads for the bus stop. She rushes and looks fearful. A group of girls spot Clea and follow her. The narrator takes some pictures. Clea gets on the bus but the driver waits for the others. The narrator gets on as well. She runs a website called NEMESIS, which exposes bullies. She intends to gather the evidence she needs.
“The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst
The narrator, Brother, reminisces about the time a rare bird landed in his family’s garden, and about his brother, Doodle, who was physically disabled and mentally challenged. (Read “The Scarlet Ibis”)
“The Use of Force” by William Carlos Williams
A doctor makes a house call to examine a young girl. He finds that she has hidden the severity of her illness and she resists the examination, leading to a battle of wills.
“The Moustache” by Robert Cormier
Mike, seventeen-years-old, is going to Lawnrest Nursing Home to visit his grandmother. She has a chronic circulatory disease and a fading memory. He isn’t eager to make the visit, uncertain if his grandmother will be having one of her bad days. (Read “The Moustache”)
“What We Talk About When We Talk About Love” by Raymond Carver
Two married couples sit in the McGinnis’s apartment, drinking and talking about real love. They use their own, and second-hand experiences, to try to define it.
“A & P” by John Updike
Three young women wearing bathing suits enter a grocery store. Sammy, a nineteen-year-old cashier, watches them as they move through the aisles. He focuses in particular on one he calls Queenie, who looks like the leader of the group. The other employees and customers also notice the girls.
First-person point of view gives readers direct access to a character’s inner world, but that access is never neutral. The narrator’s voice shapes what is emphasized, distorted, remembered, or ignored.
These stories demonstrate how first-person narration can create intimacy, tension, and ambiguity—inviting readers to question not only what happens, but how truth itself is constructed through perspective.